Cultivator



D. K. WILSON.

CULTIVATOR.`

APPLlcATmN-HLED 050.13. 1919.

Patented Oct. 11, '1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET l.

. lnveno', Dalton JY. WZson, by

D. K. WILSON.

CULTIVATOR.

APPLICATION FVILED 01013. 1919.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

D. K. WILSON.

CULTIVATOR.

APPLICATION FILED Dfc.13. 1919.

Patented Oct. 11, 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

PATENT OFFICE.

DALTON 1KT WILSON, 0F WATERLOO, IOWA.

oUnTrvA'roR.

To all whom z't may concern.' i

Be it known that I, DALToN K. WiLsoN, a

. citizen of the United States of America, and

a resident of Waterloo,.Blackhawk county, Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Cultivators, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in cultivators.

The objects of my improvements are, to supply vfor gardening or other purposes, a light, manually steered and controlled motor-propelled device, which has releasable locking-means for the steering mechanism when the caster-wheels are released in a turning operation, and which has other releasable locking-means for keeping the caster-wheels longitudinal with the course traversed when the steering-mechanism is released from the first-mentioned lockingmeans.

The invention herein embraces improvements in my United States Patent, No. 1,350,050, datedAug. 17, 1920.

The above objects l have accomplished by the means which are hereinafter described and claimed, and which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a side elevation of my improved cultivator, parts thereof broken away; Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof with the prime motor removed, and parts broken away, and Fig. 3 is a front elevation thereof, with parts, including the prime motor, removed or broken away.

`'Similar numerals of reference denote corresponding parts throughout the severalv views.

My improved eultivator pertains particularly to walking-cultivators, but the cooperating steering and tool controlling mechanisms thereof are entirely adaptable to riding-cultivators without any essential change in either mechanism.

A horizontally arranged rectangular frame 1, supported on fixed hangers 5, is by this means mounted on the stub-axles 67 of a pair ofcarrying-wheels 84.- Upon said frame is mounted a prime motor 73 upon whose power-shaft 72 is mounted a sprocketpinion 71 in mesh with a sprocket-chain 70. This chain is in mesh with teeth of a sprocket-rim 69 which forms part of a differential gearing mounted upon a countershaft 64, whose ends are supported in bear.- ings 63 upon fixed standards on said frame.

Speeication of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 11, 1921.

Application led December 13, 1919. Serial 17o. 344,612.

The differential gear is of the usual type with the like bevel-gears 61 and 62 on the respective shaft parts. A friction-clutch member is combined with the housing of sa1d gearing and it is moved into or out of operative engagement therewith by jointed arms 59 linked between it and lugs on the annularly grooved sleeve 58, the latter splined upon but longitudinally slidable on the section of the shaft 85 upon which it is mounted. The bell-crank lever 55 is ivotally mounted at its angle upon a brac et 86 and one arm is formed into a fork 57 positioned within said annular groove, the other arm having a terminal pivotal connection with a shifting-rod 53 movable through an opening in a standard 52 and provided with a rear terminal handle 54.

Upon the outer ends 'of the shaft sections 85 are fixed sprocket-pinions 64, which are in mesh with sprocket-chains 65, the latter in mesh with like sprocket-rings 66 secured concentrically upon the inner faces of the spokes of the carrying-wheels 84 by means of clamping-members 68.

Fixed hangers 6 below the cross-bar 75 of said frame depend thence downwardly, and

their lower parts are bent horizontally outwardly, secured to and support vrthe\lower ends of the depending hangers 5, by means of longitudinally positioned bars 7 carried from the hangers 6, secured to and rigidly connecting the hangers 6 and 5. The-numeral 9 ,denotes a pair of longitudinally arranged horizontal gang-frames whose forward ends are pivoted for vertical rocking to the lower lends of swivel elements 8 vwhich are mounted for horizontal rocking upon the said horizontally extending lower parts of the hangers 6.k Soil-working tools 13 are mounted for vertical adjustment in bearing-blocks 12, the latter mounted for transversel adjustment on transverse horizontal tubular elements 11, the latter secured to and supported by mating clamp members 10 which are removably secured on the rear ends of the gang-frames 9.

The angle-bar frame elements 1 are connected rigidl by means of space crossbars 2, 3 an .4, and a forward cross-bar 75. Under the cross-bar .2 is positioned a transversely arranged plate 19 whose middle portion is shaped with a segmental gear 20, the teeth thereof being directed rearwardly, and supported on a short vertical shaft 74, mounted in a bearing-opening in said cross-bar.

which have looped terminal "..handles 80,

may be rocked vertically and secured in an adjusted position. l

Upon the gang-frames 9 are erected lixedly tubular standards 14. Vertical plates 15, spaced from the outer faces of the upper ends of said standards are secured fixedly to the standards by pintle-bolts, and horizontal anti-friction rollers 16 are mounted rotatably on said pintles, spaced vertically. The interspace of each pair of rollers is traversed by one of the beams 17, so that the standards serve as supporting hangers for the rear ends of the gang-frames 9.

A pair of caster-wheels 49 are positioned to the rear of the carrying-wheels 84, mounted onshort axles 48 between spaced housingbars 46. These bars are mounted by means of bolts 47 to tubular standards 45 from lwhich extend rearwardly fixed arms 44.

The rear ends of the arms 44 are connected A 'by means of pintle-bolts 43 to the opposite extremities of a transverse upwardly-bowed connecting-bar 42, upon whose medially bowed part is secured -an angle-plate 40, whose upwardly-directed flange is medially rectangularly notched at 81.

i which movably Rock-shafts 88 are pivotally mounted within the tubular standards 45 and extend downwardly from enlarged heads 89, t-he latter having sockets 90. In the sockets 90 are secured the ends of a medially bowed cross-bar 50. 0n the bowed part of said cross-bar is secured a horizontal plate 51 having a pair of erect lugs connected by a pintle-bolt 34.

Referring now to Fig. 2the numeral 22 denotes a medial longitudinal rock-bar whose forward extremity is formed with a segmental rack 21 in mesh with the segmental gear 20. The bar 22 is pivoted on a pintle-bolt 23 extending through the frame cross-bar 3, and its rear part is bifurcated. Its bifurcations 24 are fixedly secured to the forward ends of the tubular arms 25 traverse the interspace ,of frame cross-bars 4 and 26 on both sides of the medial longitudinal line of the frame and between andspaced from anti-friction .rollers 29 rotatably mounted on pintle-bolts connecting said. cross-bars. The rear extremities of the arms 25 are iXedly connected by means of a cross-plate 31 which carries a pair of depending lugs, and the latter denotes a rock-arm are pivotally mounted upon the said pivotl late I31 are a pair of transoriiced erect lugs 32 con- The numeral 37 of longitudinally positioned slots whichthus leave between them the narrow part 38 which is adapted to releasably fit into and engage the wallsvof the rectangular notch 81 in themerect flange of the angle-plate 40. The arm or member 37 has a pair of forwardly extending forks 36 Awhich are pivoted upon the cross-pintle 33. Another pair of bifurcations 35 extend from said arm 37, and are orificed to receive the out-turned rear extremities of rodsl 91. The pivotal connections of the bifurcations 36 and 35 respectively, with the lugs 32 and said rods 91, are so relatively arranged that the arm 37 is, when in a lowered position with its engaging part 38 in engagement with the notch 81 held or interlocked with the notch, by reason of being in or beyond a deadcenter position.

The numeral 27 denotes a cross-body se-v bars 4 and 26. rlhe ends of the cross-body 27 are shaped on the rear with like carnfaces or curved wedge-members 28 termiA nating outwardly with notched recessesorl seats 30. The forward extremitiesof the rods 91 are fixedly secured to the crossbody 27. i

Operation: When the friction-clutch 6() 1 s actuated by the handled rod 53, appropriately, the motor 73 propels the'cultivator ahead by the power transmission-means described.

As the cultivator shown is of the kind called a walking-cultivator, the person walking to the rear of it may steer it, turn it right about, or manipulate the soil-working tools as follows:

When the handled rock-arm 37 is in the position shown, interlocked with the crossbar 42, the latter is restrained from lateral movements, consequently, the caster-wheels 49 are kept in alinement with the course traversed. The bowing 0f the cross-bars 42 and 50 permits them to clear tall plants in a row between the carrying-wheels. The gangframes with their implements may be controlled and moved by means of the beams 17 upon which the rear ends of said gangframes are hung, this is a slidable connection, so that in up and down movements ofthe beams, the implements may be raised or lowered or swung laterally withoult affecting the course of? the cultivator as propelled ahead. The direction of movement of the cultivator is conbut it should be noted that trolled, however, by the use of the same beams 17, when the, latter are shifted longi- -without need for using other orseparated appliances to perform parts of the necessary acts. The beams 17 maybe shifted longitudinally and simultaneously swung laterally, up or down, or with a` compound of these angular movements, to shift the gangframes while also operating the steering elements.

:When the handled arm 37 is lifted by swinging it upwardly, it is disengaged from the cross-bar 42, so that the latter becomes a laterally movable connecting-rod between the wheels 49, rinitting the whole cultivator to turnv pivotally about the vcarryingwheels v84. The frame 1 is thus made rigid with the arms 25, caused by the locking of the-cams 28 and notches 30von the cross-body 27 with the rollers 29, as vthe rods 91 are drawn rearwardly when the arm 37 is swung upwardly. Previously, the frictionclutch is thrown out of engagement to cause cessation of propulsion by the motor, and the beams 17 lifted and hung on hooks 82 on said frame. The handles 80 are shifted on their adjustable joints to permit beams to be operatedoby persons of different heights,

lCne or more bolt-holes 92 maybe provided in the landward end part of the crossbar 42 to allow of the adjustably mounting therealong of the caster-wheel on that side, when a .plow-share is to be used, to permit appropriate trackin of said wheel.

Having describel my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In combination, means of transportation, soil-working 'implements movably Supported thereon, interconnected mechanisms for both steering said means of transportation and for variably shifting said soilworking implements and connected releasable means for lockin said mechanisms in a certain relationto said means of transportation.

2. In combination, means of transportation, including carrying wheels, and casterwheels, soil-working implements movably supported on said carrying-wheels, interconnected mechanisms for both steering said means of transportation and for shifting Said soil-working implements, and releasably connected` sets of locking-means for al- I ternately holding said mechanisms in a certain relation to said carrying-wheels when the caster-wheels are released therefrom to- I swing laterally, and to prevent the casterwheels from swi'nginglaterally whenA said.

mechanisms are released. 3. In a combination, means of transportation, soil-working implements movably supported thereon, interconnected mechanisms for both steering said means of transportation 4and for variably shifting said implements, and movably connected sets'of engaging-means adapted respectively to be releasably alternately interlocked with said mechanisms and with said means for transportation, to permit variable control of the movements'of the latter.

4. In combination, carrying-wheels, ya frame mounted thereon, caster-wheeds, gangframes movably supported on said frame, and releasable locking-means movably'connected between said frame, gang-frames and said caster-wheels to `alternately lock the gang-frames 'on the caster-wheels relative to said frame, or to 4releasably lock the casterwheels against rocking.

5. In combination, carrying-wheels, a frame mounted thereon, caster-wheels, gangframes movably supported on said frame, means for shifting the positions of said gang-frames relative to said frame, and locking-mechanism supported movably on both said frame and said caster-wheels and movably connected to said gang-frames, and

Vadapted for actuation to alternately lock the gang-frames and their shifting-meansto the frame, or to' releasably lock said casterwheels against lateral swinging movements.

means for locking releasably said casterwheels against lateral swinging.

v 7. Incombination, carrying-wheels, casterwheels, gang-frames movably supported by said carrying-wheels, means for manually shifting said 'gang-frames, and operative locking-means supported on both said carrying-wheels and said caster-wheels and movable releasably relatively to -alternately lock the gang-frames to the carrying-wheels, and the caster-wheels against lateral swinging movements, v

8. In combinatioma frame, sets of carrying-wheels I supporting said frame, implements movably supported on said carryingwheels, means for changing the positions of certain of said carrying-wheels relative to the others thereof, means for kshifting said implements, and sets of movable lockingmechanisms, interconnected to each other and to said Jframe for. alternately locking the gang-frames to the frame, and holding certain of said Wheels in a desired relation to theother Wheels.

9. In combination, carrying-Wheels, a frame supported thereon, caster-Wheels, gang-frames movably connected to said frame, controller-bars movably connected to said frame and each slidably connected to one of said gang-frames, mechanism connected between said controller-bars, said frame, and said caster-Wheels operable by the controller-bars to change the direction of movement of said carrying-Wheels relative to said caster-Wheels, said mechanism including alternative locking-devices for alternately releasably locking the mechanism to said frame While unlocking the casterwheels to permit them to rock laterally, and

the caster-Wheels to track Without sch lateral swinging while releasing said mechanism to permit its use in steering the Wheels.

l0. ln a device of the character described, carrying-Wheels, a frame mounted thereon, means for steering said device -connected to said frame including longitudinally-movable members, gang-frames movabl57 connected to said frame, standards rigidly fixed on said gane-frames, and loose connections between said members and said standards,'.

permitting free relative longitudinal movements to the members Without shifting the gang-frames, or permitting such movements While *permittingl the members to simultaneously shift the gang-frames..

Sicned at Waterloo, Iowa, this 26th day of Ngovember, 1919.

DKLTON K. WILSON. 

